Arsenic and Honey
by Wammy's House Dropout
Summary: How much are you willing to sacrifice for me, dear Landlord? How high can the cost grow before you finally give up on me? How long until you leave me alone again? *Tender/Thief/Bakushipping*ANGST*


**Hey everyone! Welcome to the prologue chapter of my angst-ridden, tendershipping, thiefshipping, sex-having, yaoi-fest extravaganza! XD**

 **There will be porn, angst, violence, drama and fucktons of fluff :)**

 **Also, several of these chapters have been inspired by various musicals. But mostly _Phantom of the Opera._ Cause I said so :D I also plan to launch another Fanfic focusing on the Thief King to be a companion piece of sorts. So there's that :)**

 **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, of course. So just sit back and enjoy the show motherfuckers XD**

* * *

Sometimes, Ryou wished he'd chosen a different school to transfer to. There were certainly plenty around, and he never really got attached to them anyway. He could have enrolled in any of the high schools around the country, and just keep on transferring around until he finally managed to graduate.

Maybe if he'd managed to do that, the spirit in the Ring would have to content himself with picking off his friends, and none of his more sinister plans would have been able to come to fruition.

(A boy can dream, can't he?)

But, as luck would have it, he chose Domino High after all. And, as luck would have it again, He just so happened to meet Yugi Moto.

Of course.

Before he'd met Yugi, the Spirit taking up space inside his head had never bothered introducing himself. Ryou was content to believe that he had merely gone insane, forgetting large chunks of time and hearing whispers out of nowhere. (It certainly would have made a lot more sense than the truth of the matter.)

Now, however, Ryou knew him all too well. And, a lot of times, even he wasn't sure which one of them was _really_ in control of his body. He was an insidious weed in his mind, wrapping his tendrils around his soul and choking the life out of him until he wasn't really sure where his soul ended and _his_ soul began.

So...why was he being so friendly all of a sudden?

Bonz had no doubt intended to let them die in that cave. Ryou could explain the spirit getting _him_ out of the cave in some sense of self-preservation- but there was no real reason he should have saved the others. There was no need to save the rest of them. He could have just taken Ryou's body and found his own way.

But he didn't do that. He allowed Ryou to keep control, and merely led the way out. What sort of whim of fancy would bring out that sort of altruism?

 _ **I'm different now.**_

Ryou goes rigid, gripping the bedsheets in a vice.

 _It still doesn't make any sense. Why would you save Yugi and the others too?_

 _ **I was only trying to help you.**_

Ryou growls.

 _I know what your sort of helps looks like. I don't want it._

 _ **I've already told you, haven't I? I want to be your friend now.**_

Ryou shakes his head and draws a shaky breath.

 _Why should I believe you?_

He feels warmth settle over his shaking hands.

 **I suppose there's no real reason you should.**

Ryou can't help but feel he's being mocked. He tries to pull his hands away, but the warmth merely moves up to his shoulders. He nearly yelps, but he doesn't want to wake anyone; he pretends the goosebumps on his arms are due to the cold of Pegasus' castle.

 _Leave me alone._

 **How can I do that?**

Ryou shoots a glare off at the wall, trying to ignore the fact that the most likely evil spirit in his head was somehow touching his shoulders (which was totally not creepy at all, no way.) He wants to yell, but doesn't.

 _ **Do you worry someone might hear you? This castle is huge- nobody would possibly notice.**_

 _Shut up already…_

The warmth leaves his shoulders. The spirit decides to materialize on the foot of the bed, sitting cross-legged and wearing his usual smug smirk. His cold blue eyes are alight with all manner of mischief.

It's so damn uncanny. This...whatever he was, looked so much like Ryou...and at the same time, looked just different enough to be creepy. His limbs were a bit too long, his face a bit too sharp, his eyes a bit too narrow.

" _Are you afraid of me?"_

Ryou shakes his head, gripping the blankets tighter still to stop this hands trembling.. The spirit throws his head back and lets out a barking laugh. It rings in Ryou's head more than he'd like.

"The hell are you laughing for?" Ryou snaps out loud.

" _You're adorable, Landlord."_

The spirit cracks a grin to rival the Cheshire cat himself, and leans in closer. Ryo leans away from him, wishing very much he could phase through the headboard.

" _I must admit that I've grown quite fond of you, Landlord. If those little friends of yours make you happy, then I don't mind keeping them around."_

"Is that it, then?" Ryou snapped. "you can't expect me to believe you're only doing this for my benefit."

" _Well, why wouldn't I?"_ The spirit asks, a note of genuine curiosity in his voice. " _After all, if I'm going to share this body with you, why shouldn't I want your happiness?"_

Ryou doesn't know how to answer.

"You've had no problem making me miserable so far," he snaps.

The ghost's face falls, and he looks- sad? Regretful? Ryou doesn't know, but, for some reason it makes him regret what he said.

" _You aren't the only puppet in this show, Landlord."_ He says quietly.

Then, as quickly as the spirit appeared, he is gone. And, weirdly, Ryou isn't quite happy to see him go.

It's silent in his mind now- the spirit will probably ignore him for awhile.

So Ryou can't even hold a proper conversation with the (probably) malevolent spirit in his head.

Wow.

Just wow.

And he thought his social skills were pitiful before.

* * *

Ryou remembers when this whole mess began.

He had been hanging around the Domino museum, idly sketching a few of the more interesting exhibits into scenery he could use to expand his Monster World set once he got his hand on some more materials.

He was so engrossed in his work that he didn't notice any passersby until one accidentally bowled him over, sending his sketchbooks and pencils flying everywhere.

In a panic, he tried desperately to gather up his materials before they could get stepped on and broken. Fortunately, the woman who crashed into him knelt down to help, muttering passionate apologies under her breath.

But then- she fell silent.

Ryou's stomach twisted into a knot. Maybe his work was a bit too morbid for her. He should have been more careful, damn it. He didn't need someone else thinking he was a freak.

She stood up in a trance, staring at the open page of his sketchbook.

Then, out of seemingly nowhere, the woman pulled out a business card and handed it to him. Ryou took it, forcing a polite smile at her.

"I'm a talent scout for Industrial Illusions. Mister Pegasus just happens to be on the look for new faces to freshen up the company. Would you mind if I sent a couple of these to him?"

Ryou was dead silent for a few seconds. This was all so sudden that he felt it just had to be a joke.

He forces a smile onto his face.

"...Well, why not?" He said finally, and let the woman take a few pages of his sketchbook. She bid him a hasty farewell and went on her way, dialing a number into her phone as she left.

This had to be a prank. Someone was trying to get his hopes up.

It must have been a joke.

But, a day or so later, he received a call from Industrial Illusions just like she said he would, saying that Pegasus had invited him to his Duelist Kingdom tournament as a guest. That he would be happy to see more of his work, and maybe discuss a contract. It seemed a bit odd that he would go quite that far this early on, but Pegasus was a well known eccentric, so maybe that was to be expected.

And that's about when the euphoria set it.

This could be the very thing that saved his life. Maybe he could finally break out of his shell of quiet mediocrity. This might be the thing that finally allows him to emerge from his father's shadow.

He might even give his father a reason to be proud of him again.

He ran around his apartment like a man possessed, gathering up a portfolio of his best drawings and paintings- the ones he was sure Pegasus would enjoy. His clothing was thrown in almost as an afterthought; he tossed in his Duel Monsters deck as well- just in case he got a chance to play.

His heart was beating at a thousand miles an hour. He couldn't stop smiling.

 _Amane...I'll make you proud of your big brother._

* * *

God damn it, he wished one fucking thing could go right for him.

That (probably) evil spirit in his head just had to come out and fuck everything up. If it weren't for Yugi ever so conveniently having a (probably _not_ evil) spirit of his own to put things right again, he might not even be around right now to be pissed off about it. After all, he was more than willing to die if it meant his friends could be okay.

And, just his luck, not long after that, he got stuck in a fucking cave with all his school friends, left to die because of some dumbass yank- Bandit Kevin, wasn't it? No, that wasn't right. Keith. It was Bandit Keith.

It didn't really matter if they couldn't get out of this death trap.

What kind of assholes did Pegasus allow at this fucking tournament, anyway?!

He felt dangerously close to tears- all he wanted to do was show off some of his pictures to some crazy rich guy and maybe get a job. Why couldn't his bad luck have left him alone just for a couple weeks?

 **I think I can get you out of here, Landlord.**

Aaand, then there's _that_ asshole again.

 **If you'd be so kind as to put my Ring back on, I think I can get you out of this mess.**

 _Why in the bloody hell would I put that thing back on again?!_

 **Are you saying you'd rather I allow you and your friends to die?**

Ryou let out an angry sigh. The Millennium Ring could track the other Millennium Items, couldn't it? And Yugi said that Pegasus had the Millennium Eye. So, this was probably his best chance.

Under the pretense of having to use the restroom (or the cave floor, as it were), he put a little distance between himself and the others. He rummaged through his backpack for a bit before his fingers found the cold metal of the Ring.

 _I shouldn't be doing this._

He slips the thin rope over his neck, tucking the Ring beneath his sweater where his friends couldn't see.

Best chance or not, Ryou is pretty sure Yugi won't be too pleased he'd actually listened to the psychotic spirit he had the misfortune of meeting with.

 _You'd better keep your end of the deal._ he warned halfheartedly. He isn't sure why he bothers thinking it- there isn't much he could do, even if the Spirit decided to fuck him over again.

He'd just have to hope.

* * *

Well, Ryou supposes, even the biggest liar can tell the truth every once in awhile. After all, here he is, safe and sound in Pegasus' castle. Yugi, Joey, Mai and that fucking Yankee bastard Keith are all competing in the finals. Ryou will get to be there to watch, and that's good enough for him. He's had more than enough Dueling for awhile.

He hasn't gotten the chance to actually show Pegasus his artwork yet, but that's okay. He actually got to meet the man, and that alone was pretty damn awesome. He's as hopelessly weird and bizarre as Ryou had heard; in fact, he reminded him a good deal of Willy Wonka. He seemed a nice enough man, though Yugi seemed to dislike him for reasons he wasn't keen to tell Ryou. He just kept shooting withering glares across the table throughout the welcoming banquet and didn't touch any of the food.

Ryou had shrugged it off and happily tucked in; he was absolutely ravenous after all they'd been through. Hell, even the spirit was content to stay quiet for once and simply enjoy the meal. Pegasus had given him a friendly acknowledgement and promised him they would be able to talk more later. So he didn't give much thought to anything else.

Now, though, his mind is racing. Hell knows he isn't going to get any sleep tonight.

He flips his legs over the edge of the bed and starts to pace around the room. Despite the fire left smouldering in the fireplace, the room is chilly and raises goosebumps on his pale skin. His mind is racing with excitement and worry and anxiety and fear and anger all mixed into one big ball of fuckthisshit.

Sunrise can't come soon enough.


End file.
